A young bride passed away prematurely after using the wrong spoon to mix her cup of tea.
24-year-old Jess Prinsloo was vacationing in South Africa together with her partner, Craig McKinnon, when the young man proposed to the love of his life at Mpumalanga’s ‘God’s Window.’
After the successful proposal, the couple celebrated for a few days before visiting Jess’s mother’s home in Johannesburg.
During the visit, Jess, who suffered from a severe allergy to dairy, accidentally came into contact with milk after using a milk-stained spoon to mix her tea.
After ingesting a tiny portion of milk, the young lady went into anaphylaxis and couldn’t be saved despite carrying two EpiPens with her at all times.
Days after the incident, Jess passed away in the hospital.
“It’s difficult to find clarity in today, the worst day of my life. But a point I have never been clearer on, the 3+ years I got with my Jess are irreplaceable, and I wouldn’t trade them for 60 years with any other person on earth,” Craig said in a tribute to his wife-to-be.
“I am devastated, and feeling pain like I’ve never felt before, but anyone that spent time in her company knows what I mean when I say I have been blessed to call her my fiancée [for] the greatest three days of my life.”
The grieving partner went on to reveal that the pair met while studying in 2019. After two years together, they moved in together and another year later, they got engaged.
“When Jess died, a part of me died too – but there is no one to blame for her passing away,” he added.
Jess suffered from an extreme allergy to dairy products ever since she was just nine months old. At the age of 18, the girl had to be resuscitated after eating a curry that contained milk.
While she always carried two EpiPens with her for prevention, the emergency medicine didn’t have any effect on her allergic reaction during her most recent incident in South Africa.
Paying a tribute to the young woman was also Jess’s family who said:
“Our beautiful, fun loving Jess recently passed away. Jess was an impeccable daughter, sister, niece, friend and most recently Fiancé. She lit up every room she walked into and touched the lives of everyone she met.
“If you’ve ever met Jess you would probably know what her go to fun fact about herself is, she’s allergic to milk. While she was on the holiday of a lifetime in South Africa she experienced an allergic reaction. While at hospital Jess tried her best to pull through she passed in peace late that night.
“All of the years we had Jess will get us through the years that we won’t.”
Our thoughts remain with Jess’s family during this challenging time.